


Summer/winter

by starsandsupernovae



Category: MCU, Marvel, WinterIron - Fandom
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-22
Updated: 2017-12-22
Packaged: 2019-02-18 15:28:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,366
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13103130
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starsandsupernovae/pseuds/starsandsupernovae
Summary: For the WinterIron holiday exchange





	Summer/winter

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Stark-N-Barnes (StarSpangledBucky)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/StarSpangledBucky/gifts).



Anthony loved running. His mother, the queen, used to say that he had been born with his feet kicking and had never stopped. And so he ran, through the fields and meadows that made up the Summer kingdom, laughing, as his stewards chased behind him, calling out for the child to slow down for god’s sake never worrying about where he might end up. He had never known any limits, no boundaries, as he grew, until one day, shortly after his sixteenth birthday on a diplomatic trip with his parents through the kingdom, in a small border town when he slipped out of the inn in which they were staying, intent on exploring the surrounding area. He had learnt to ride by now and loved it, the thrill of the wind rushing past as the horse ran, the speed as they flew. He mounted and left the town slowly, picking up speed as he left, making sure to keep to a central path but not taking close note of anything else as he rode, not noticing the air steadily getting colder, the sky getting more overcast, snow appearing on the ground, until he was aware of another rider, gaining on him quickly, and not wanting trouble, and expecting someone from his guard, he slowed to look behind him. At first glance, it seemed that the rider behind him was a warrior, albeit one in an armor Anthony hadn’t seen before. But as he grew closer, the prince realized that the rider was no older than he was. He dismounted as the rider came up to him, and the rider followed suit, allowing Anthony to get a full look at him.  
He was gorgeous, this rider, Anthony realized with a start, pale faced and dark haired, his eyes a cold clear icy blue.  
“Who, the hell are you?” the rider asked, his voice trying to be smooth.  
Anthony tilted his head a little in confusion, he rarely came up against the question.  
“My name is Anthony Stark. Prince of the Summer Kingdom. And who do I have the honor, the honor of addressing?” he trailed off as he saw the riders eyes widen in what looked like a mixture of horror and fear.  
“You- you can’t be here.” he whispered hurriedly. “You need to leave. Go back. Right now. Please.”  
“I don’t understand.” Anthony whispered back, something in the other boys voice, some sense of urgency rushing through back onto him. “What’s wrong?”  
The boy gave him a ‘you can’t really be this stupid’ look.   
“You really don’t know where you are, do you?”  
Anthony shook his head slowly, before his location slowly dawned on him, the horror in the boys eyes suddenly making sense.  
“Oh my god. This is-you are-I’m in..” he began babbling incoherently for a moment before pulling himself together.   
“I can’t be here.”  
“Fuck yeah you can’t be here! Wait-” he paused. “Can I say fuck around you? Do they swear in the Summer kingdom?”   
Now it was Anthony who gave him a Look and he snapped back to his panicking. “Right. We need to get you to leave. Now. How did you get here? We’re still pretty close to the border.”  
Anthony indicated the way he had come.  
“Ok so you’re gonna go back that way. And fast. I’m only here for another half hour, and then someone who’ll actually do what they’re supposed to is going to be on border guard.”  
Anthony remounted and got ready to ride back, but before he did he turned to look at the boy behind him waiting.  
“You’re on border guard. You’re a Winter Warrior. Why are you helping me?”  
The boys mouth opened and closed a couple of times before just blurting out the truth, as his cool blue eyes met Anthony’s warm sunny brown.  
“I don’t know.”

“You don’t know?! What kind of answer is that? If Rumlow finds out…”  
“Keep it down, Steve!” Bucky looked around to make sure none of the other Winter Warrior recruits were listening. “I don’t know okay? He was just there, and he was looking at me with these stupid huge brown eyes, and I just, I wasn’t going to turn him over, I couldn’t. He didn’t even know where he was. He wandered past the border by mistake somehow. Besides if he was caught we’d all be in trouble for letting him in.”  
Steve sat back on the bed next to Bucky’s in the small dorm.   
“I guess you have a point. Besides, it’s not like you’re ever going to see him again.”  
“Yeah.” Bucky answered, trying to feel relieved. He should feel relieved, or worried or something. He definitely shouldn’t be feeling a bit sad, as though something had been taken from him. He shouldn’t be thinking of him, of his fluffy brown hair rippling as he rode, of his face, smiling as he introduced himself, of his eyes, warm and sunny, like nothing Bucky had ever seen.   
It’s not like you’re ever going to see him again.  
Bucky repeated it over and over to himself. He was going to be a Winter Warrior. He had to. Regardless of, he pushed away the thoughts that kept crawling back in, whether he thought they were entirely right or not.  
And so he pushed the prince and his eyes away, out of his thoughts, to where he would never have to encounter them again. Or so he thought.

“Why not?” Anthony asked, eyes opening wide. “It's beautiful. And it's just some gardens, nothing bad happen in gardens. You would go if Pepper suggested it.”  
He looked pleadingly at his best friend and bodyguard.   
“Yes because if Pepper suggested it there would be a good reason for doing so.” Rhodey rolled his eyes. “And we probably wouldn't end up dead. This is a terrible idea.”  
“But what if I promise we don't die?”  
“I'm not going, Tony. It's right by the border. Of the Winter Kingdom. I don't know about you, but I'm not particularly interested in ending up at the mercy of a winter warrior.”  
That made sense. The warriors were fierce ferocious people, rumored to be faceless under their masks, deadly with any weapon, attacking under the slightest provocation. But Anthony wasn't thinking sensibly.  
“I'm bored Rhodey. There's nothing else to do. Nowhere else to go without being seen and noticed. Please.”  
“I can't let you go. I'm sorry, Tony.”  
Anthony shrugged.  
“You're not going to go, are you?”  
“Of course not.” Anthony answered.  
Two hours later he was on his way.  
He rode up to the gardens carefully, keeping to the side paths. He wasn't sure why he had wanted to go so badly. Maybe it was because of the natural beauty of the place, the lush greenery and vibrant flowers. Maybe it was because he missed the place he hadn’t gone to since he was a child of eleven, nine years ago. Maybe because he enjoyed the solitude of the place considering almost no one knew of the existence of the place now that his parents and their immediate escorts were-  
Anyway, it was empty. Even if someone did know of the location, it’s proximity to the border, and the fact that part of it was on technically disputed land would keep them away. Or so he thought.  
Because there was someone there, as he realized after dismounting and moving through the green of the trees towards the figure he saw warily. It was only when the sun emerged from behind a cloud, casting it’s light down, that he saw the light bounce of the silver of armor, the cold iron armor of the Winter Warriors and he realized the danger he was in. He moved backwards, an instant half stumble in which he slipped, crashing into a bush, and creating a noise that caused the Warrior to whip his head around to see him, and the next thing Anthony knew he was on his back, the Warrior above him, sword pointed at Anthony’s throat.  
“This is my land!” even with a sword on his neck, Anthony was indignant. “What’re you even doing here? You’re in the wrong country! Out of your jurisdiction!”  
He flinched as the Warrior seemed to press the sword harder, his life suddenly flashing before his eyes as the figure loomed over him before he drew back suddenly and lifted his helmet. Behind was a face that looked familiar, although Anthony couldn’t quite place it, it was changed, the hair seemed oddly long, his face older but then, he brushed his hair away from his eyes and Anthony knew.   
“You’re the warrior in training I met. On border patrol.”  
“You remember.” The Warrior looked more relaxed or at least as relaxed as anyone could in the armor he wore.  
“And I’m assuming you do too.”  
“Well, you’re alive.”  
Anthony smiled at that a little uneasily not entirely certain if it was a joke.  
“What’re you doing in the Summer Kingdom?”  
“Technically, we both laid claim to this land.”   
“Are you serious? Do you see snow? I don’t see snow. Is it cold? I don’t feel cold. Do you see flowers? Do you feel that sun? Do you want to know why??? Because it’s part of the summer kingdom.”  
The Warrior’s face softened a bit.   
“I didn’t say it was ours. Just that we laid claim. I’m here because….well it’s not cold. There’s no snow. It’s different.”  
Anthony nodded. He was fully aware that as crown prince, heir to the throne as soon as his twenty first birthday happened, he should run, scream, call for help, have the enemy arrested. But he was also fully aware of how alone they were, no one having known where Anthony had gone. Besides….he didn’t want to. He didn’t want to turn in this man who came to feel the warmth.  
“And you, your highness? What brings you to the gardens?” The question came suddenly, a surprise to Anthony who was unused to being questioned as such.  
“Me? I’m just here for some privacy I guess. I don’t know. It’s pretty. I like pretty places.”  
“And your palace isn’t pretty enough for you?” The soldier answered back before looking horrified, realizing that he was questioning an enemy prince in enemy lands.  
But Anthony only laughed a little, a bit taken aback but also enjoying having frank conversation with someone outside the two people he normally did.  
“It’s busy in the palace. Here it’s-well, it’s meant to be private. Except for you.” He tilted his head a bit. “You, whose name I don’t even know.”  
“It’s Barnes. James Barnes.” he answered, somewhat taken with the prince’s lack of fear, so unlike what anyone else aside from the other Warriors regarded him with.  
“Hi, James.” Anthony smiled at him, his deep brown eyes reflecting the sunlight, seeming to warm him up inside. “I think we got off a bit on the wrong foot.”  
“You think?” At last the tiniest of smiles flitted around the corners of James’s mouth. “Neither of us should be talking to eachother. You should be calling for someone to arrest or behead me. I should be trying to kidnap or attack you.”  
Anthony shrugged. “Well I don’t particularly feel like arresting or beheading you. How’re you feeling on the kidnap or attack front?”  
At this James almost laughed.  
“Are you drunk or something?”  
“Unfortunately not. I should bring some wine next time. And blueberries.”  
“Blueberries?”  
“What? I like blueberries.”  
“Next time?”  
“Well I’m not going to stay away. You can do as you please of course. You being a brave scary winter warrior. And me just being a helpless summer prince.”  
“A helpless prince?”  
“Are you just gonna sit around and repeat back my words to me? Not that it’s not cute and all.”  
“Cute-” James started before catching himself. “I mean no. I mean…….” He trailed off.  
Anthony let out a laugh at his flustered face.   
“I need to go before they think that someone has actually kidnapped me. But I’m gonna come back.” He stopped, taking long enough to stand and mount his horse, long enough for James to wonder if the man was in fact insane, before he continued.   
“One week. Same time.”   
Perhaps the prince was insane. And James should definitely stay away. But a week later he was back. And so was Tony. With blueberries. 

“You showed up!” Tony sounded surprised, but pleased, and James felt a smile cross his own face as he removed his helmet.  
“I came for the berries.” he answered, sitting down opposite him, almost backing into a rose bush.  
Anthony chuckled, his laugh ringing out cool and clear in the slight breeze alleviating the heat of the sun.  
“Sure, sure, that’s what they all say.”  
“All of the many varied Warriors you meet in disputed territories?”  
“All of those.”  
At this James joined in the laughter, tilting his head affording Anthony a good look at his face, which was substantially more bruised then the last time they had met up.  
“What happened?” Anthony looked horrified gesturing at James’s face.  
James shrugged. “Training. We were fighting and my face ran into someone else’s face.”   
Anthony’s own face seemed to throb looking at the colors across James’s but the Warrior himself seemed unconcerned, asking if he could try a blueberry.  
“You’ve never had one?”  
“We don’t grow them. Why would I have had one?”  
Anthony tossed the bag over, James catching it deftly and popping one into his mouth.  
“It’s good!”  
“You sound surprised.”  
“Well, you know,” James shrugged a bit. “Summer food isn’t meant to be good.”  
“What?!” Anthony looked almost offended.  
“That’s what we were always told. Ultimate supremacy of Winter and all that.” He lowered his voice instinctively as he continued “I mean the fact that the kingdom’s royalty secretly imports half their fruit kinda undermines that but…”   
Tony couldn’t say how long they sat there making idle conversation, the next thing they knew it was getting dark and the two of them needed to leave. James made to give back the berries but Anthony waved them away.   
“Keep them. Share some with some winter people.”

It soon become a weekly thing, the two of them making their various excuses to escape to the garden to meet. And eventually they began staying longer, talking further. Mostly inane things, what ridiculous training exercises James had done, what preposterous ceremony Anthony had to be polite for. It was one day, James sitting his back resting against a tree, with Anthony leaning on his shoulder when he asked  
“Why’d you do it? Really, why would you come here, and why weren’t you afraid of me? I could’ve killed you.”  
Anthony shrugged, plucking a blade of grass from the ground and running his fingers along it, shifting his eyes downwards. He intended for some easy lie to slide out but here in this place with this person, the truth emerged instead.  
“I guess….I didn’t care.”  
Anthony felt James’s entire body stiffen beneath him.  
“What?”  
“I didn’t care okay?!” Anthony felt defensiveness creeping into his tone, waiting for the inevitable barrage of questions. But it didn’t come. He looked up and saw James instead staring down at him, ice blue eyes meeting sunny brown with something indescribable there, his hair falling into his face as he waited for Anthony to speak. And in the silence Anthony did.  
“I lost my parents. About a month before I came to the garden. And in the palaces I had to pretend like nothing was wrong, I had to be the prince, I had to stand up and take my place as heir apparent. I wanted to go somewhere where I didn’t have to. It was meant to be empty here you know.”  
He tried forcing his face into a smile as he blinked back the tears gathering in his eyes.  
“I’m sorry.” James voice came out low, gentle.  
Anthony shrugged. “Well my dad- great king and all, not the best person. My mom on the other hand, she was a good queen and a good person.” he stopped, shoving his hand into the grass and pulling up a fistful.   
“Tell me about her.”  
“Everyone loved her honestly. Like approval throughout the kingdom. She wasn’t born in the Summer Kingdom you know, she came from Spring. Used to sing to me in their language, instead of just Universal. She was always proud of me. Always believed in me. And now she’s gone. And she can’t do that anymore. And so afterwards I, I didn’t really care a lot about anything. I drank. I dueled. I met up with sketchy Winter Warriors alone in the gardens.”  
“What about now?” James voice remained soft, smoothing over Anthony’s rough words. “Do you still not have anything to care about?”  
Anthony waited a moment, letting himself get lost in James’s bright eyes.  
“I think I’ve found something.”  
He reached out and gently brushed away the hair that had fallen into James’s face, before pulling him down to meet his lips, in the most electrifying kiss Anthony had ever experienced.  
“I’ve found someone.”  
He looked up at him, leaning on his shoulder, James slipping an arm around him as they stared at each other. And in that moment, the sun streaming through the trees enveloping their forms in warmth, Anthony wanted to stay in that forever. It was a shame it all came crashing down two days later.

 

“We’ve found him, Your Royal Highness. Your parents murderer.” The captain of the guard stepped back so Anthony could see the prisoner, the warrior between several more heavily armed guards.  
“This is him?” Anthony’s voice faltered. The armor looked familiar, too familiar but of course their armor was all similar, right? But there was that dent on the arm, the angle of the scratch on the chest….  
“This is him.” One of the guards kicked at the warrior kneeling between them, hands tied behind him, helmet off but long hair concealing his face looking down in the shadows. “We identified him by the mark on the arm- it designates rank and position in the army. There’s only one ICE commander. This piece of scum. Should we take him away?”  
Anthony wanted to say yes, so so desperately craved to tell them to take him away, to tell them that he never wanted to see him, to have him killed without ever seeing his face. But-  
“No. Let me see his face.”  
“Your highness?”  
“I said let me see his face.” Anthony’s voice deepened as he stood, coming closer to them, close enough so that he could identify the warrior by himself, but he wouldn’t believe it, it couldn’t be, it couldn’t be. One of the guards reached over and roughly pulled at the prisoners hair, forcing him to look up, his eyes meeting the prince’s.   
And Anthony reeled back, feeling a physical pain, a punch into his stomach, a stab into his heart as he saw him, as he viewed the icy cold eyes staring up at him, as he saw him, because it was him, he had killed them, and Anthony had talked with him, Anthony had laughed with him, Anthony had befriended him, this man who had murdered his parents, who had taken his family away. And worst of all, Anthony had loved him.   
“You.” he breathed out, not caring if his soldiers heard, if they knew, he deserved for them to know, he had gone out to meet this man and he had come also. He had come even after they had died, he had heard Anthony cry over them, had comforted him. How he must have laughed behind his back, gone back and told his friends of the wonderful trick he was playing, and how Anthony, like a fool had bought it all, bought the whole ‘in pain’ act, bought the ‘innocent’ act, Anthony should’ve known, known not to trust anyone outside the inner palace circle, not to trust a Winter Warrior of all people.   
He was trying to speak now, small muffled sounds escaping from behind the gag and Anthony felt a sense of revulsion at the noise, from the mouth that he had watched vividly as it told him stories, from the mouth that he had, one day under the bright sun, feeling the warmth, leaned forward and kissed. Oh god he had kissed him, his first kiss, gone to a man who had been lying about it all. He felt his eyes sting with tears that he refused to let fall, he would not cry before him, he would not let any more of him show to this man before whom he had already let himself be so vulnerable, not let him see how he had hurt him, not let him see the ache he had caused, a gaping hole within him that he felt could never be filled. He felt his head shaking as he stumbled further backwards trying to escape, escape from this nightmare, wanting to wake up in the garden, having drifted off, his head fallen into his lap, but he couldn’t because this was real, he was a monster, and he knew he could never again return to the garden, never again return to the place he had truly felt safe and warm, never again be with someone who made him feel as the warrior had.  
“Take him away.” he managed to force the words from his throat to the guards who nodded and dragged him away, even as the muffled sounds increased, and the soldier struggled. He waited until the sounds faded. He waited until he could go up to his private quarters. He waited until he carefully locked the doors and made sure that he was alone. And then, he fell down, onto the floor, and wept.

 

“I’m sorry you say he wanted to be caught?”  
“Seems like it.” Rhodes answered. “He gave himself up-providing that he gets to speak with you alone. Which is ridiculous of course. Obvious-”  
“I’m gonna meet with him.”  
“Tony, I know you’re upset right now but don’t go making stupid choices.”  
“I want to meet with him. He’ll be restrained and he won’t be able to do anything. There’s no reason not to.”  
With that he stride ahead into the room where the other soldier, the one who had offered himself to them.  
“Rogers, I assume?” He had never met the man But James had spoken of him often enough.  
“Stark.” The blond lifted his head, tied up though he was to look at him.  
“I am the heir to the throne of Summer!” Anthony couldn’t help but feel a bit indignant at the crude way he had been addressed.  
“I know. Bucky told me.”  
“I assume that’s why you’re here.” Anthony kept his voice calm now, unwilling to let the other man know just how much the words hurt him to say. “The man who killed my mother.”  
“No.” Returned the warrior. “I’m here about the man you believe killed your mother.”  
“And you’re saying it wasn’t him?! I have four guards who identified him!”  
“Identified his armor?”  
Anthony felt a flutter of hope flit through his chest before pushing it down hard. He had tried trusting a warrior before.  
“I was with James at the time. He wasn’t in the Summer Kingdom. No one from Winter was. It was a national day of pride. All the military on display, except those on guard.”  
“What? You’re lying. I’ve never heard of him this before.”  
“And why do you think that is? You can ask. Try to confirm. But I stand by what I said. The assassinations of your parents weren’t commanded by Winter. And they were definitely not executed by Bucky.”  
“Stop. You’re lying.”  
“Ask around. No military action was taken that day.”  
“I said stop!” Anthony whirled around and stormed out, off to double check but obviously he was lying right?  
Except according to anyone with knowledge of the Winter ceremonies he wasn’t. Without fail they all confirmed that there was indeed a sacred day on the date that the prince specified. 

“What the fuck, Steve?” James was yelling. “What’re you doing here?!”  
“I came to speak with Anthony.” Steve averted his gaze, arms folded. “To tell him the truth.”  
“He thinks he knows the truth.” Now it was James who turned away, pain etching heavy lines into his face. “He hates me, Steve. And I can’t blame him. He thinks I killed his parents. And then befriended him. He’s not listening to anything anyone says. He’s not-“  
“Here?” A voice from behind the bars rang out and James spun to face it, jaw dropping open. Because there, behind the bars, was Anthony, dressed simply, and holding a ring of heavy keys. Anthony moved forward reaching out for him through the wall.  
“I’m so sorry.”  
“It wasn’t your fault. You believed your men.”  
“I am still so so sorry.”  
Anthony slid the key into the lock opening it quickly, and letting the door swing open.   
“We need to go.”  
“What?”  
“We need to go. I believe you didn’t do it, but I don’t know who else would agree with me. Not to mention” Anthony took a breath.  
“I don’t know who to trust. I have some allies, firm allies in Fall. I’m going to go to them. And I could let you go back to Winter and if you want to then by all means and I know, I know, James that I have no right to ask you this. But would you come with me?”  
James said nothing, overcome, just nodded his head before stepping forward to him and pulling him into his arms.  
“Yes, Anthony. Yes I will come with you.”  
The two of them left hand in hand before going outside, Steve in tow to where a small group was waiting.  
“This is them?” As light redhead gave them a once over.”  
“Yeah.”  
The red headed nodded as they climbed on their horses and began to ride away from Anthony’s country.  
“We’re coming back.”James rode up behind him.”  
“It’ll be okay.””  
“As long as you’re here, Anthony, it will be.


End file.
